


(Uh-Oh) It's Magic! - A Stranger Things Hogwarts AU

by existentialspace



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling, Stranger Things (TV 2016)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Hogwarts, Because 80's, Bullying, Fluff, Gen, Guilt, Homophobia, Hufflepuff Jonathan, Hufflepuff Mike, I'm Bad At Tagging, It follows the plot of the series (Mostly) but at Hogwarts, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Ravenclaw Dustin, Ravenclaw Robin, Ravenclaw Will, Robin before her canon appearance because I say so, Slytherin Lucas, lots of blood, the title is from that one "The Cars" song
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-07-16
Updated: 2019-07-21
Packaged: 2020-06-29 20:46:25
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 3
Words: 5,525
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19838206
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/existentialspace/pseuds/existentialspace
Summary: Mike Wheeler's best friend Will Byers disappears and all that's left is his wand and the ramblings of a girl who claims she saw him.So he sets out to find him on his own.He just didn't expect to find a girl in the woods who seems to recognize him.





	1. Two Different Runs Down Two Different Hallways

_ November 6, 1983. London, England _

Since The Breach, there had been three rules.

  1. If you see something strange, report it to your supervisor immediately.
  2. Never **_EVER_** go downstairs alone, especially after dark.
  3. Don’t make any noise.



A scream notified a lone scientist that someone had broken all three rules. As he raced down the hallway, the flickering candles gave light to bodies littering the floor. He tripped on one accidentally, and his shoes began to squeak as he left bloody footprints in his wake. If he could just get to the elevator at the end of the hall-

His robe snagged underneath his foot and he almost fell face-first to the ground. He tore the useless thing off, throwing it back and hearing the clatter of his wand inside as it fell to the floor. So that was a bad idea. But he couldn’t stop now so he just ran forward.  _ Don’t think about defending yourself. Just get to the elevator. _

Almost there… the door was around 50 feet ahead. He heard every footstep sounding in time with alarms, “RRAAHHH, RRAHHHH, RRAAHHH” and the damn candles made it even harder to see.

He almost fell into the elevator.

Pulling himself up, he slammed his hand onto the button labeled with an up arrow. Not risking safety to make a sound, he doubled over, retching up blood and vomit from his run.  _ I made it. _

As the doors started to close he heard it. A low, small growl. He lunged for the door, hoping to make it through and back into the hallway decorated with blood. His hand crossed the threshold and-

“DUSTIN! WILL! LUCAS!  **_RUN!!!_ ** ”

Four boys raced down an entirely different corridor, wands out, trying to avoid the most hideous monster known to man. Bullies.

“YOU HEAR ME? YOU'RE ALL DEAD MEAT. YOU CAN'T RUN FOREVER, TWATS.”

“What did we ever do to him, exactly?” Dustin asked as they rounded the corner. The boys hurried down the stairs. Troy was close on their heels.

“Does it even matter anymore? It’s always the same. Eat dinner, run from Troy and his goons.” Lucas tripped on the last stair but landed his fall gracefully and continued to run.

“Troy’s just a dick. And we always get away anyway. What’s there to worry about?” Mike loosened the yellow and black tie around his neck and cast a look back at his friends. “Those Dungbombs probably helped us too.”

“Yeah, but at some point, he’s bound to notice we go the same way every time. Maybe he’ll take another route or something tomorrow. He may be a Gryffindor but he’s not dumb-“

“GUYS!”

Mike, Lucas, and Dustin skidded to a stop and turned around. Will stood across the hall from the kitchens, pointing to a painting of thousands of soldiers in battle on a field.

“You missed it,” he said, cracking a smile. The rest of the party did the same.

“Nice one, Will.” They all gathered around him. 

“Go on, you open it. It’s your turn anyway.” Mike encouraged.

Will held out his wand, touching it to a lone red soldier amidst the white and black paint.

“E pluribus unum.”

The boys watched as the red soldier began to make his way from the bottom of the hill to the top. When he reached the top, he began to grow larger and larger, until the frame was just a canvas of red. 

“I SEE YOU YOU SONS OF BITCHES.” Echoed through the hall. Troy had almost reached them.

“Shit!” Dustin whispered.

“Go go go!” Mike ushered his friends forward. One by one, they began to climb through the frame of the painting. First Lucas, then Dustin, then Will. Troy’s angry footsteps grew louder and louder.

Mike went through as Troy rounded the corner. Well, more like fell through. The tunnel behind was dark and dirty. He quickly pulled himself up and pointed his wand at the way to get back through, whispering: “Unum de multis.”

Troy walked right by.

Mike turned to his friends, grinning. The three of them had their wands raised, the tips lighted. He raised his own.

“Lumos.”

— 

The walk through the tunnel took around 10 minutes, give or take. The boys had discovered it in the second semester of their first year while running from Troy (the first time of many). An older Ravenclaw had told Dustin and Will about a supposed secret tunnel across from the kitchen, leading to a clearing in the Forbidden Forest. “In case you ever need help running.” Will had found out the painting was the entrance, but it was Lucas who found out the password from one of the ghosts. From then on, the tunnel was their hiding place. Where they studied, spent free days, did practically everything. Although the boys didn’t know it, the clearing and tunnel were protected by a spell that allowed no one in the Forest in. Which meant the place was truly theirs. And they treated it as such.

That particular evening it only took them seven minutes to walk through the tunnel and come out the other side. Dustin said it was the “thrill of the chase” that spurred them on, but Lucas said that was the dumbest shit he’d ever heard. Whatever the reason was, they came to their clearing with one absolute certainty. That finally Will the Wise, Dustin of Snikwah, Lucas the Great, and their fearless leader Sir Michael would defeat the evil army out destroy the Wizarding World as they knew it! In their story, it wasn’t 1983. It was 1183 AD, and wizards were not outlawed yet. They had to protect and save as many people as possible. And the forest was kind and allowed their adventure to become real.

“Periculum!” Will shouted at a group of fictitious monsters, who “exploded” in a blaze of very real red sparks. 

“Onward!” Mike pointed his wand forward, and they crisscrossed the clearing once again.

“WAIT!” Mike stretched his arms out, and the boys all gathered behind him. The red sparks faded, leaving the area in complete darkness. “Do you hear that sound? That  _ boom, boom, boom _ ?” 

“What is it?” Will asked quietly, and Mike turned to look at him in the darkness. Ever the storyteller, he stepped forward, casting ribbons of light from his wand for dramatic effect. 

“Somethings coming. Something hungry for blood. Something hungry for  _ your  _ blood, in fact. If you fail to stop it, it could mean the end of wizardkind forever. Do you accept the risk?” 

“YES!” the boys chorused. Mike smiled. 

“A huge, awful, grotesque monster known only as The Demogorgon by the terrified locals blocks your path.” The forest heard Mike’s story and conjured the silhouette of the creature he described. “It knows of your quest and plans to stop you. WILL-“

Lucas and Dustin stepped back so Will was facing Mike and the monster alone. 

“You are the most esteemed sorcerer in the land, rivaling the wisdom of Merlin. Only you have the power to stop this awful creature before it destroys the world as we know it. What do you do?”

“Use reducto, Will!” Lucas said.

“Too risky! Cast protection so we have some time to think,” Dustin countered.

“Reducto!”

“Cast protection!”

“Reducto!”

“Protection!”

Mike stomped his foot on the ground. “The Demogorgon is tired of your silly human bickering! It stomps towards you!”

The silhouette copied Mike’s words. The boys argued over what to say as Will stood frozen in place.

“WILL?” Mike called one last time.

Will raised his wand and pointed it at the creature's face. “REDUCTO!”

An explosion rocked the clearing. The boys were flung every which way. When they pulled themselves to their feet, the silhouette was gone. A huge pit stood in the center of their space. They all looked at each other for a few seconds before they burst out into laughter. 

“BRO. I didn’t think it’d actually-“ Dustin snorted.

“You have my vote, Will the Wise.” Lucas walked over to pat Will on the back, who smiled at his friend.

Mike blinked, and then stuck his wand in his waistband. “I guess that means we’re done for tonight then?”

Another burst of laughter.

“Hey, Lucas. I bet I could beat you to the end of the tunnel. Winner gets the other's best chocolate frog card.” Dustin had reached the entrance to the tunnel “Lumos.”

“Yeah, but if I win I’m getting your Mordred.”

“Yeah, you wanna bet?”

“You're such an idiot Henderson. LUMOS!” Lucas raced down the tunnel.

“WAIT I DIDNT SAY GO-“ Dustin turned to Mike. “Night guys. See you at breakfast tomorrow. Mike, I’ll tell your sister you love her.” He raced down the hallway after Lucas. “COME BACK HERE YOU SON OF A BITCH-“

Mike rolled his eyes, turning to Will. “You sure you don’t wanna go with Dustin? He’s your best bet at the riddles for Ravenclaw Tower.”

“Nah, I’m ok. I’ll walk with you.” Will smiled.

—

When they reached the end of the tunnel, Dustin and Lucas were already gone.

Mike and Will walked down to the Hufflepuff common room doors. 

“Goodnight, Will.” Mike opened the door and was about to go in when Will grabbed his arm.

“Um, Mike?”

“Yeah?”

“When I used Reducto back in the clearing…”

“It was totally badass!”

Will swallowed. “Yeah, but… it didn’t work.”

Mike blinked, confused.

“The Demogorgon. It got me.”

“Oh. Are you ok? Do you wanna talk about it?”

“No, I think I'll be ok." Will swings his arms by his sides. Mike can tell he's scared. "Well, see you tomorrow.”

“Um… bye. Will. Stay safe.”

Mike entered the Hufflepuff dorms, leaving Will alone in the dark hallway.

About to start heading towards the stairs, he realized no one had ever properly ‘closed’ the painting, so he walked over to it. He pulled his wand from his waistband and touched it to the canvas.

“Unum de mult-“

Without warning, Will was thrown through frame and back into the tunnel. He stood up, picking his wand off the ground.

“Wh-what?”

He attempted to climb back through the painting but to no avail. 

“E Pluribus Unum!” He jabbed his wand against the wall. What was going on?

He walked away from the painting, hands on his head. Someone would have to notice he was gone tomorrow morning right? Mike would come looking for him, and they would find him in the tunnel tomorrow, right? Everything would be ok, right? Mike wouldn’t just abandon him like that he was a Hufflepuff for god sake don’t worry Will everything’s gonna be fine just breathe like Mom said-

A low, small growl sounded behind him.

The hairs on the back of Will’s neck stood up. He didn’t even have to turn around to know he had to run.

_ Run. _

**_RUN!_ **

He bolted down the hall, clamoring for his wand as he heard the steady  _ boom boom  _ of the things feet several feet behind him or was it his heart he wasn’t sure he just knew he had to keep going.

Gradually the foot beats started to fade and finally, he reached the clearing.

It was pitch dark. Only a small sliver of a moon shone down as a small boy alone in the Forbidden Forest, terrified, wondered what to do. He could call for the centaurs but then that thing would probably find him. His breathing became shallow and grasping his wand became difficult because of the sweat on his hands and oh god what was he gonna do he wished Mike was here or Mom or Jonathan or Lucas or Dustin or hell even Professor Clarke who taught charms and was always kind.

“Lumos.”

Finally, he shakily turned towards the entrance to the tunnel, holding his wand out in front of him like a sword. He had cast Reducto. Maybe he could do it again.

“My name is Will Byers and I am not afraid. My name is Will Byers and I am not afraid. My name is Will Byers and I am not afraid.” Each time he said the phrase (taught to him by his mom) his voice grew quietly stronger. 

“My name is Will Byers and I am not afraid. My name is Will Byers and I am…” 

The bright light at the end of his wand was growing brighter and brighter. He took a step back. 

“My name is Will Byers-“

Something dropped from his ear. He reached up to touch it and brought away crimson. Blood.

His nose was bleeding too. Drops flew to the ground and puddled around his feet. One hit his robes. He could hear the growling again. 

“P-please.” He was crying now. “No- no-“ He shook his head.

The light grew brighter and brighter and brighter and brighter and brighter and-

A dark wand fell to the ground in an empty clearing. The crickets chirped, and far away you could hear mermaids singing in the lake.


	2. Where’s Will?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The morning after, the boys begin to wonder where Will is. No adults seem to be listening.

Will Byers received a letter from his mother every Monday with breakfast.

Their barn owl was named Winona and although she was old, she knew the route from their tiny house in Northern England to Hogwarts like it was the back of her… wing?

That morning, a storm was brewing on the edge of the grounds, but Winona managed to fight her way through the clouds and into the Great Hall. In her beak were two letters. One for Will, of course, and one for his older brother Jonathan.

She landed at the Hufflepuff table. Jonathan looked up from his eggs, reaching up to stroke the top of her head.

“Hey girl, how you doing?” The owl cooed softly in response. “I haven’t written my letter to Mom yet but if you come back at lunch I’ll get it to you.”

Winona shook her head in annoyance. A letter back would mean double the flight time. Especially if the smaller letter receiver had one too. She dropped Jonathan’s letter into his porridge and took flight, heading over to the Ravenclaw table.

“Hey!” Jonathan called good-naturedly, laughing and looking around to see if anyone around him had noticed what the bratty owl had done. No one. He stopped laughing quickly and watched as Winona flew over to the table, hovering over the spot where Will and his friends sat normally. Mike, Dustin, and Lucas looked a bit more solemn than usual. They looked around themselves with confusion, expecting something. Winona dropped Will’s letter amongst them and flew out. Speaking of that, where was Will? It wasn’t like him to miss breakfast.

Jonathan furrowed his brow. Maybe he was sick? He’d ask Mike when he saw him back in the common room later. Rummaging in his robes, he pulled out a roll of parchment and a quill. Thunder sounded quietly in the distance as he began to write home, asking his mom if Will had been a little off at all lately.  
—  
“So you’re sure you saw him go up the stairs last night?” Lucas interrogated.

“Last I saw, he was walking towards the stairs. Then I closed the door.” Mike nervously picked at his pancakes, looking towards the door as if expecting Will to waltz through like everything was fine. He couldn’t help but think that maybe he was at fault for all this, even though he wouldn’t say anything about it.

“Mike, don’t worry. He probably just fell asleep studying in the library again.” Dustin shook his shoulder, trying in some small way to make his friend feel better. “You know how he’s scared he’s gonna bomb one of Snape’s exams-“

The boys were interrupted by a roll of parchment falling inbetwixt them. Mike watched the Byers’ owl fly into the gray cloudy mass masquerading as a ceiling. A lightning strike crossed it, and he sat back slightly in small surprise. Lucas grabbed the parchment, unrolling it and beginning to read.

“It’s Will’s weekly letter from his mom,” he said, scanning it.

“Oh jeez, if Will really is missing-“ Dustin started.

“Then his Mom’s gonna flip,” Lucas finished.

“Maybe we should tell the groundskeeper about it.” Mike checked his watch. “We still have thirty minutes before Defense Against the Dark Arts.”

Lucas shook his head. “Uh, no? If we tell Hopper about Will then he’s gonna ask where we were last night. And then we have to tell him about The Tunnel.”

“Not exactly,” Dustin countered. “We can just tell him we were down near the kitchen.”

“Exactly.” Mike set down his fork. “Let’s go now so we’re not too late to class again.”

The boys stood up, but Dustin held up his hand. “One second!” He took an extra pancake and stuffed into his robes. When Lucas squinted at him, he raised his hands in protest. “For our travels!”

They walked out of the Great Hall, making their way towards the front doors, but before they could reach them a familiar voice reached their ears.

“Well if it isn’t our favorite freaks?”

Sighing, the three boys turned around to see Troy and his awful friends. Of course.

“Quite a bit of nerve you guys had disappearing last night.” He stepped forward, looking at each of the party up and down. “Where’s your little gay friend?”

The boys looked at each other.

“Never mind, The Freak Show is still up and running without him. Say, James-“ Troy called on one of his goons, “-Look at our headlining freaks! We’ve got-“ he stepped forward, mockingly tapping each boy on the shoulder as he called them their nickname. “Toothless! Midnight! and our very own Mudblooded Hufflepuff.” He stopped in front of Dustin. Mike looked down in shame at the Mudblood comment. “I have half a mind to grow you some teef, Toofwess,” Troy said.

“You’re a dick.”

“What’d you say Henderson?” Troy uncharacteristically got very quiet. He took out his wand and jabbed it under Dustin’s chin, who stared back in defiance.

Suddenly, the bully’s wand flew out of his hand.

“What the hell?!” The Gryffindor ran after his wand. But, whenever he got near it, it’d skitter down the hall a few feet. He looked very stupid as he chased it, muttering curses every time it moved. Dustin looked around the hallway for what had caused the scattering of their bully. He noticed her, a tall girl outside The Great Hall doors, mostly shrouded in shadow. She moved her wand another millimeter, and Troy’s went flying across the hall. She laughed. Noticing Dustin, she mouthed ‘Go!’ and winked. The boy smiled, and the party raced out the doors.

“What was that about?” Mike asked Dustin as they walked down the hill. “Who was that girl?”  
“Her name’s Robin. She’s a Ravenclaw, 6th year. Prefect. Will and I see her around sometimes.”

“Same year as your sister’s douchebag boyfriend Steve Harrington,” Lucas added.

Mike nodded. The boys continued their trek, sometimes scuffling to make sure they didn’t slide on loose dirt and rocks. They approached a small building on the edge of the Forbidden Forest. The shack was home to Hogwarts’ Groundskeeper, Jim Hopper (often called “Chief” by friends for reasons completely unknown to most of the students).

“Are we sure he’s even up?” Lucas asked as they reached near the door. Hopper’s dog, Fang, looked up from the spot where he was chained reproachfully. “There’s not even smoke coming out of his chimney.” Dustin reached out to pat his head, and the dog whined. Dustin grinned.

“I’m sure he’s up. It’s his job to be up, so he can help students,” Mike said at the top of the stairs. Lucas reached out and rapped on the door thrice.  
—  
Groundskeeper Jim “Chief” Hopper was not up.

He lay passed out on his couch, half-naked and not a care in the world. He’d gone down to the Hog’s Head last night and drank his fill of fire whiskey before coming back and passing out in the exact position he was in when three sharp knocks rattled him awake.

Blinking away his sleep eyes, he stood up, reaching blindly for a shirt draped across the back of his sofa. He pulled it on as he stepped forward, knocking over more bottles that lay on the floor.  
Three more knocks, more intense this time.

“Wait a second!” He was almost at the door now. Another knock. “Jesus, what's so important,” he whispered under his breath. He started to turn the doorknob. “I told you, Florence. Don’t bother me before noon. Mornings are for coffee and contemplating why I’m still groundskeeper at this damn school-“

It wasn’t Florence McDonald, professor of Care of Magical Creatures and Hopper’s closest thing to a work friend. Instead, three small children stood on his doorstep.

They must’ve been second years by the looks of them. The one in front was a scrawny kid with dark hair- a Hufflepuff. One of the others had a mop of curly hair. He was petting Fang, who panted happily. The third, a Slytherin, swatted the curly-haired one on the arm. The curly-haired one pulled something out of his robe and gave it Fang. Then he noticed Hopper and stood up straight. They didn’t say anything.

“What do you want, kids?” Hopper finally asked.

And the floodgates opened.

The boys started talking over each other. They all said something about a kid named Will and a disappearance. They gestured to each other and the back to the castle and the cacophony grew louder.

Finally, it got too annoying and he waved his hand to shut them up.

“One at a time. You.” He pointed to the scrawny kid in front. “What happened to your friend?”

The kid looked up. “W-well our friend Will-“

“He’s a Ravenclaw!” The curly-haired one interrupted.

“Does that even matter?” The Slytherin rolled his eyes.

“He asked what happened to Will! It’s important information.”

“He doesn’t need to know his house yet?”

“Well, it’s good information to know, Mucus.”

“What’d I say? One at a DAMN. TIME.” Hopper crossed his arms and was suddenly aware he wasn’t wearing pants. He needed coffee. And a cigarette.

“Last night after dinner we were running from these Gryffindor mouthbreathers and we ended up near the kitchens.” The scrawny kid fiddled with his tie. He was lying, alright. Probably not about the bullies, but something else. “Will left from where we were last, and we haven’t seen him since.”

“You sure he isn’t just sick?”

“We’re not sure he’s missing just yet. We just have a bad feeling about it and wanted to let you know.”

“You want me to find him?”

“Well, yeah. Isn’t that your job? You’re like an Auror for our grounds.”

“Look, kid.” Hopper rubbed his eyes. “What’s your name?”

“Mike. Mike Wheeler.”

“Ok. Mike. It isn’t my job to go looking around for every kid that doesn’t show up to breakfast. He’s probably just playing hooky, alright?”

They opened their mouths in protest, but he raised a hand to silence them.

“Lemme finish. Just to ease your minds I’ll go down and look in the place you last saw him. To make sure. How does that sound?”

The kids looked at each other. One by one, they nodded.

“Ok. Now if you please, would you allow me to have a normal morning? Don’t bother coming back. I’ll find you.”

The door slammed on their faces.

“So he’s not gonna help,” Lucas said as they walked back up to the castle.

“Yeah. Lucas was right, he wasn’t even up when we knocked.” Dustin looked thoughtful. “Dog was cute though.”

Mike was staring off at space as they walked. Dustin waved his hand. “Earth to Mike.”  
Mike looked up. “What is it?”

“What are you thinkin’ about Wheeler?”

“Hopper’s not gonna help. We should just drop it.” Lucas took another step.

“Well, I was thinking just that.” Mike stopped and turned towards his friends. “If Hopper’s not gonna help, we’re the only people who know anything about Will. So tonight we’re gonna go back into the tunnel. And we’re going to find him ourselves.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! :) I’m gonna be gone for a week at a camp starting on Monday, so I figured I’d upload the prewritten chapters I have. Jonathan and Mike are close because they’re both Hufflepuffs. See you soon!
> 
> Also follow my tumblr!! @dumbass-mike-wheeler


	3. MnogoGolosov and Evil Russians

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hopper goes to the place Will was last spotted while the Party looks on their own. In Hogsmeade, something even stranger goes on.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter isn't really complete, but I'm leaving for camp tomorrow so I thought I'd publish. I hope you guys enjoy!

The sign above The Three Broomsticks door creaked in the morning sunshine. Hogsmeade was beautiful in early November, and a mix of butterbeer and chocolate smell wafted down the streets. Behind the Three Broomsticks were the foothills of some mountains, dressed by thick sprouts of spruce and pine. Flowers grew along the edge of the forest and birds flitted through the trees. It was perfect.

Almost.

Peering cautiously before stepping out of the trees, a young girl approached the back of the building. Dressed in ratty trousers and a shirt with black and white horizontal stripes, her bare feet touched lightly on the ground to avoid rocks and twigs. Her hair was shaved closely down to the scalp so that she sort of looked like a boy if you didn’t look too closely. 

The back door to The Three Broomsticks was open, and she could smell something cooking inside. Her stomach growled. She decided to risk it for whatever was in the building.

She went in quietly. The room she entered was small, with a fire in the corner. It warmed her down to her feet. She’d been cold for too long. Something was cooking in a pot above it. It smelled amazing, so the girl tiptoed over to it. She surmised that the liquid substance in the bowl was too hot to pick up and eat, but there was some yellow bread on the counter next to the fireplace. She tore off a chunk and stuffed it into her mouth. Flavor exploded across her tongue. Yes, this was good! She ate more and more, not bothering to chew. She had eaten about half the loaf when she heard two voices shout. She didn’t even know what they said, she just grabbed the yellow bread and bolted for the door.

“HEY! HEY! GET BACK HERE!!” A gruff voice shouted behind her. She was almost through the door when a pair of hairy arms wrapped around her. “You think you can steal from Rosemerta and me, boy?” She tried to shake the man off, but he grabbed her shoulders and spun her around. His face contorted in surprise. “What the-“  
—  
Hopper couldn’t get the three second-year boys out of his head. He had told himself that the kids were crazy and that they’d forget about it by lunch. But the more he mulled over it, the more he thought that maybe something was wrong. And that name… Will… where’d he recognize it from?

It dawned on him. Shit. That was Joyce Byers’ kid. 

They went to school together. He was at her wedding. How’d he not remember?

He stood up, grabbing his wand from the table. What had the scrawny Hufflepuff said…   
Across the hall from the kitchens.  
—  
So yeah. The Mike kid was lying. 

Hopper knew the Hogwarts grounds better than the back of his hand. Better than that Filch character anyway. He knew about the tunnel behind the painting of the soldiers. He’d used it to snog Hufflepuff girls back when he was still in school. So he spoke the password and climbed through. 

“Lumos.” 

He walked down the tunnel (he’d never known there was an end to it). When it opened up to a clearing, he could see that this is where the 2nd year boys spent their time. Toys and games lay scattered around. A small pit stood near the center. Next to it was a wand. 

Hopper bent down and picked it up. Surely it was Will’s. And if he was anything like Joyce, he would never go anywhere without his wand. 

The groundskeeper looked between the crater and the wand in his hand. Something changed in his mind. He closed a fist around the boy's wand and turned towards the tunnel. Time to tell Joyce that her boy was missing.   
—  
“So, do you have a name?”

The man had taken the girl upstairs into a small flat after he realized she wasn’t violent. He had asked the women with him to ‘man the Broomsticks’, whatever that meant. Then he’d kissed her on the cheek, said “Love you, Merta”, and lead the girl up a narrow flight of stairs near the fireplace. The girl looked at the yellow bread longingly as they went up.

Now she sat across from the man at the kitchen table. He was burly and covered in tattoos, but had a kind face and wasn’t forcing her to do anything like the Bad Men.

“My name’s Benny,” He said, reaching across the table. She pulled her hand away and leaned back in the chair.

“It’s ok, I’m just tryin’ to shake your hand.” Benny gestured with his hand, moving it up and down over the table. The girl watched him do it with vague curiosity. Papa used to do that with some of the men in the dark robes when they came to visit. That meant it was bad, right? But Benny didn’t seem to want to hurt her. Not yet.

She hesitantly raised her hand to meet his over the table. Benny smiled as they shook, his eyes crinkling around the edges.

“Nice to meet you,” he said, releasing her hand. “What’s your name?”

He noticed something. On the girl’s wrist were three small numbers, 011. She noticed him looking and pulled her hand back towards herself and placed it in her lap.

“How did you get that tattoo? What does it mean? Eleven?”

She looked down at the floor.

“Look-” Benny sighed. “Rosemerta and I… we wanna help you. But we can’t do that if you don’t talk to us.”

The girl looked up and squinted at him.

“Maybe we can get you some new clothes, or some more of that cornbread that you were stealing. But we have to know your name.”

She still didn’t respond. Benny shook his head and stood up. “Guess I’m gonna go tell Merta that you ran away from Hogwarts and that we need to contact Albus Dumbledore…”

The girl’s eyes widened. She recognized that name. Albus Dumbledore. Papa knew him. 

“Eleven,” she said suddenly.

He turned back to her. “Well, I’ll be damned. She speaks! What’s it mean?”

She pointed to herself. “Eleven.”

Benny smiled. “Welcome to The Three Broomsticks, Eleven. Let’s go get you some more cornbread.”  
\--  
Charms was the boys’ last class before dinner. Professor Clarke was their favorite teacher, and it wasn’t hard to tell that they were his favorite too. 

After the teacher had tried (and failed) to have the children exit the classroom in an orderly fashion, the boys rushed up to his desk.

“Did it come?” Lucas asked with anticipation. 

Professor Clarke leaned on his desk. “I’m sorry boys. I hate to be the bearer of bad news but…” He grinned. “It came.”

The boys exploded with excitement.

“Now, now! Calm down! Don’t waste your excitement when you haven’t seen the contraption!” The professor led them out of the classroom and down the hall. Up a flight of stairs they went, and at the top was a tower room. It was circular, and it appeared empty upon first inspection. But the boys knew better. When they stepped into the middle, thousands of voices flooded into their ears.

“Is this for real?” Dustin shouted, eyes wide as he spun around, looking for the source of the noise.

Professor Clarke nodded from the door, just as excited as his students. After a few more seconds, he walked over to a corner of the room and pulled something out from the wall. The voices ceased. The three boys gathered around him as he opened his hand, revealing a small purple orb around the size of a baseball.

Mike’s mouth dropped open. “Is that-”

“MnogoGolosov, Russian for ‘Many Voices’.” He passed the orb to Mike’s hand, who raised it to his eyes with delight. “Be careful with it. It’s a prototype.”

“So were those really real people we were hearing?” Lucas asked. Mike slipped the sphere to his hands.

“You betcha. MnogoGolosov was made by the Russian Ministry of Magic so they could spy on MACUSA. It knows what the user is thinking of and scans the Earth for people who might be talking about what you’re thinking of. Ours is less powerful than the actual device in Russia though, so it can only scan people inside the castle.” Dustin handed the orb back to him when he finished speaking.

“That is so cool, Professor Clarke,” The Ravenclaw said, still staring at the sphere even when it was out of his reach.

“When Will sees this he’s gonna lose his shit!” Lucas said.

“Lucas!” Professor Clarke reprimanded.

“Sorry,” he said sheepishly.

Mike was thinking. “Do you think we could use it again, Professor Clarke? One more time before dinner?”

The teacher looked at him a second and then nodded. “I suppose, just for a second. You need to eat though.” He handed the orb to Mike, who placed it on the floor. A chorus of voices flooded the room as Lucas, Dustin, and the professor stood back. Mike closed his eyes, thinking of one thing.

Will Byers.


End file.
